Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis condemned a reported Hunter Biden plea agreement and claimed that it shows there is a two-tiered standard of justice in the United States.
Hours earlier, Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, confirmed via a lawyer that he would plead guilty to federal tax offenses but avoid prosecution on a separate gun charge in a deal with the Department of Justice (DOJ). With the sentencing guidelines, it means he likely will not spend any time behind bars.
Hunter Biden, 52, will plead guilty to the misdemeanor tax offenses as part of an agreement made public Tuesday. The agreement will also likely avoid prosecution on a felony charge of illegally possessing a firearm as a drug user, as long as he adheres to conditions set by prosecutors. It’s somewhat unusual to resolve a federal criminal case at the same time charges are filed in court but not unheard of.
The deal ends a long-running Justice Department investigation into Biden’s second son, who has acknowledged struggling with addiction following the 2015 death of his brother Beau Biden. It also averts a trial that would have generated days or weeks of distracting headlines for a White House in what Republicans said is a politicized move on behalf of the DOJ.
The agreement requires the younger Biden to admit guilt, and the deal is narrowly focused on tax and weapons violations rather than anything broader or tied to the Democrat president. It doesn’t touch on allegations from Republicans that Hunter Biden, who previously had a lucrative position as the board member of a Ukrainian gas company, and his family allegedly profited on influence-peddling and bribery schemes will Joe Biden was vice president.
Trump, in a post on his social media platform Truth Social, likened the Hunter Biden deal to a “mere traffic ticket,” adding, “Our system is BROKEN!”
Christopher Clark, a lawyer for Hunter Biden, said in a statement that it was his understanding that the five-year investigation had now been resolved. “I know Hunter believes it is important to take responsibility for these mistakes he made during a period of turmoil and addiction in his life,” Clark said. “He looks forward to continuing his recovery and moving forward.”
Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, wrote that the younger Biden is “getting away with a slap on the wrist” with the charges. Comer again this week alleged that the FBI and DOJ sat on evidence that allegedly shows members of the Biden family may have profited from spurious business deals overseas.
While other House Republicans made similar statements about the Biden plea deal, Democrats said that they believe it shows the DOJ is independent of influence.
“This development reflects the Justice Department’s continued institutional independence in following the evidence of actual crimes and enforcing the rule of law even in the face of constant criticism and heckling by my GOP colleagues who think that the system of justice should only follow their partisan wishes,” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said in a statement Tuesday.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware has confirmed that the investigation into the younger Biden is still ongoing, meaning that more charges could be brought in the future.
